Helping Washington businesses reduce toxics: Inside Ecology’s Pollution Prevention Incentive Fund

In spring 2024, Ecology piloted a Pollution Prevention (P2) Incentive Fund, a new project to lower financial barriers that prevent businesses from adopting safer products, installing pollution prevention equipment, or upgrading aging systems.

Paul Fabiniak, a technical assistance specialist on the project, explains that reducing toxic chemicals at the source is one of the most effective ways to protect workers, communities, and the environment.

"Many businesses are interested in pollution prevention, but they're running on tight margins and can't justify the expense," Fabiniak said. "Projects like this can bridge the gap between opportunity and success by reducing financial barriers."

Through the fund, Ecology offered participating businesses reimbursements of up to $5,000 for out-of-pocket purchases that helped implement approved pollution prevention opportunities, including:

• Testing or adopting safer alternatives to toxic products
• Reducing dangerous waste, like used solvents
• Cutting hazardous air emissions, like benzene and dioxins
• Reducing solid waste
• Saving water or energy
• Lowering operational costs

The program aimed to support up to 10 projects during the 2023-2025 biennium, with a total potential investment of $25,000.

How the pilot worked

To kick off the project, we surveyed businesses who are required to develop pollution prevention plans based on the amount of dangerous waste they generate annually. Ecology's P2 Technical Assistance Team helped applicants identify eligible projects, like these completed projects from TOTE Maritime Alaska and Henrybuilt.

TOTE Maritime Alaska (Tacoma)

The TOTE shipping company used the Incentive Fund to install an aerosol can crusher that reduced hazardous waste volumes and improved worker safety. Used aerosol cans are now punctured to collect remaining solvent before the can is crushed and recycled, eliminating disposal of the entire can as dangerous waste.

TOTE's project also created an acid neutralization system that turns phosphoric acid into water and a salt that can be more easily and safely disposed.

Ecology reimbursed TOTE just under $2,000 for their project, and results show a strong return on investment. More than 2,000 pounds of hazardous waste can be handled onsite each year, instead of requiring special handling, transport, or disposal.

Henrybuilt

Henrybuilt, a Seattle kitchen systems company, used funds to repair a solvent distillation unit. The fix helps recycle solvent and reduce generation of hazardous waste.

Ecology reimbursed Henrybuilt for about $1,600 of their project costs. With the new unit, they reclaimed about 850 pounds of solvent in the first four months - potentially more than 2,500 pounds of solvent per year that would otherwise become hazardous waste.

Why these projects matter

Even small equipment upgrades can significantly reduce a business's environmental footprint. By helping cover these costs, the P2 Incentive Fund helps Washington businesses that want to invest in cleaner technologies but may not have the budget flexibility to do so.

If you're a business interested in pollution prevention strategies or non-regulatory technical assistance, contact us to explore potential improvements and resources.

Ecology's pollution prevention services provide non-enforcement technical assistance to Washington businesses. Our engineers, chemists, toxicologists, and environmental specialists can help businesses reduce dangerous waste generation and toxic chemical use, conserve water and energy, and improve efficiency while reducing operational costs.